I signed up for D.E. Carlson’s ARC team on a whim, not expecting to be chosen, and I’m so glad I did! I wholeheartedly enjoyed reading this book.

The elemental world-building reminded me of Avatar: The Last Airbender (which is always a good thing), but expanded and more sophisticated. The main character grew up in isolation, so she learns about how her world works at the same time as us readers. I really appreciated the gentle introductions to the intricacies of the world, since such things are usually dumped all at once.

The enemies-to-lovers is light, *for now*. This book focused more on the main character learning who she is, where her place in her world will be, and what she doesn’t want from a partner. That’s not to say that the enemies-to-lovers isn’t there though: I could feel the tension simmering under the surface, slowly building into awareness as the book went on. This romance is going to be a slow burn for the ages, and I can’t wait to watch it develop over the course of the series.

Another thing I appreciated about this book is that despite the high stakes plot, it still felt cozy. The characters were real people, and their stories as individuals never felt overshadowed by the plot. Rather, the two existed hand in hand.

This book made me laugh, kept me biting my nails to know what happened next, and even made me tear up at one point. (No, I can’t tell you when! That would be spoilers! It was really good though.) Overall, I would definitely recommend it to other readers, and I can’t wait to devour the companion novella!
15 s1 comment Hyrum HawksAuthor 2 books3

An excellent epic fantasy novel. I won't spoil it, but the perspective characters are well done. Their inner conflicts are well developed. Their external conflicts are intriguing. The side characters are a wonderful mix of good, conflicted, and evil, and you don't always know which is which until it is too late. Overall, I didn't want to put it down. The Christian themes are subtle enough to not be noticeable to someone who doesn't share the faith, but deep enough to speak to a believer's soul. 13 s Stephanie1,022

Cover? Stunning. Story? EVEN MORE SO. Fantasy anything is a favorite and this was AMAZING. The characters and their conflicts, the world building, and the pacing throughout.. never a dull moment or lull.

I received this ARC for an honest review, all thoughts/opinions above are my own!11 s Reese Songbird62 19

If you asked me what the theme of this book was, I couldn’t tell you. At least not yet.
Let’s start from the beginning. I had high expectations for this book, hearing that it was epic fantasy with Christian allegory of sorts, swoony romance, complex characters—everything desirable in a fantasy novel for me.
But this book didn’t quite reach that. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but not quite as good as I hoped.
The plot was interesting, if a little dull sometimes, but it had lots of potential. Not epic, in the term I was envisioning, but still cool.
The romance was hardly there, which was disappointing. There seemed to be somewhat a love triangle, but never quite sure if that was actually going to happen.
Coming to the characters, Iris was fine. She annoyed me sometimes, but mostly was okay. Tabin was a nice character, but I can’t see him as the one she will end up with.
Besaun was…there.
Jacin…welll…..my favorite part of the whole book and why I will be reading book two (that and the faith content) he was great
Plot was cool, and I’m interested in seeing where the author takes it.
Faith content was interestingly done, with an allegory, and I appreciated the scenes with Iris meeting El.


Content:
Kissing, mentions of kissing or attraction, “touching intimately”

Violence and blood
11 s3 comments Abbi Gebo2

I was lucky to receive an ARC copy of To Bind Fire, in exchange for an honest review. I’m very grateful to the author for this!

If I could give this a 3.25 rating, I would. It didn’t quite reach a 4 star read status for me, so in the spirit of honesty, I have to rate it a 3 star. To sum up my thoughts:

Pros:

-Immersive and well-explained world-building: This was my favorite part of the book, and what kept me reading at times when my interest flagged. Another reviewer compared the world to Avatar: The Last Airbender, and I have to agree! The author adds even more elements to this though that I think made for a very interesting world. I d how we were learning about the world dynamics right along with the main character; that was very well done.

-Interesting cast of characters: There is a whole cast of characters that keep you hooked, and I enjoyed the point of view switches.

-Subtle yet powerful faith themes: As a Christian myself, I’ve read plenty faith-themed fantasy books that are a touch on the cringe-worthy side. I thought the way the faith themes were presented here were subtle enough that a non-Christian won’t feel overpowered, but powerful enough that a Christian will identify with it.

Cons:

-Pacing: I don’t quite know how to explain this other than that at times, it felt a lot was going on, yet nothing happened at all. There were quite a few scenes that I skimmed quickly through, yet never felt l missed anything.

-Character development: Tying into the pacing, I felt as though the main characters went through what should have been quite a bit of development, yet they didn’t quite feel fully fleshed out to me by the end. I hope that their development continues in book two, because there’s definitely potential for them!
7 s Brittany992 152

Clean Fantasy

3.5 Stars ?

“We all have a choice. What will you choose?”

A clean fantasy with faith themes… and dragons - count me in. Here’s the thing- I loved the idea of this book. It was mostly good, and I enjoyed it, but it felt a lot of nothing happened. The characters were just ok. The plot was interesting and I enjoyed some aspects of it, but there were holes. Hopefully in the next book things will make a little more sense.

Faith content was excellent- and one of my favorite parts of the book.

Magic system- kinda confusing for me personally. I need answers to this song business. What does it even mean?

Characters- The main character Iris, who has the fire power was just so bland. She didn’t start to really have a personality until the very end of the book. Tabin the male main character (and love interest) was kinda immature and overbearing, I really d his sister though. Then there is a whole other subplot pov from a character named Besaun… honestly, I still don’t understand what is going on in that particular story line. There wasn’t a whole lot of information and it never really got fleshed out enough in my opinion.

Finally - there is Jacin. He is why I will be reading the next book. We don’t get much from him or about him, but he was the most interesting character in the whole book. I couldn’t stand him at first… then things happened and he got super mysterious and I ate that up with a spoon. Towards the end of the book, it’s what drove me to keep going- I had, no I needed, to know more about him.

Overall- it may sound I didn’t it from this review, but that’s not the case- it was interesting and has all the potential to redeem itself in the next installment. I could definitely feel all the inspiration for this story coming out through the pages of the book. There are glimpses of Narnia, LOTR, and other faith based allegories. I just needed more of something that I can’t put my finger on. Regardless, I’m hopeful that the holes get filled in the next book. I applaud and respect this author for her debut, and ability to weave the faith elements into a fantasy story of this caliber. Despite my issues with the plot, I am excited to read the next one in the series.3-star-reads christian-fiction clean-reads ...more7 s2 comments Julia Harris23 2

A surprisingly touching and gripping tale that I can't wait to continue! Our leading lady is beautifully flawed as she struggles to come to terms with life-shaking things identity, loss, destiny, and power.

There are distinct religious tones to the premise of the story, which get pretty heavy at times, but the story had me so hooked that I really didn't mind so much. It's got all the best things; a young woman finding her own strength, learning to stand on her own two feet. A young prince who chafes at the weight of his position. Magic, mystery, conflict, and more!6 s Clarissa Ovalle46 2

Honest ARC REVIEW.

5 STAAARSSSS!!!
Autor del comentario:
=================================